New trade protocol allows longer stay for working Pinoys in Japan
FI LIP I NO investors and professionals, along with their spouse sand children, are now allowed to stay longer in Japan as part of a trade protocol Southeast Asian countries signed with the East Asian economic giant.
Asean member-nations and Japan last week adopted the First Protocol to Amend the Asean-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership. The pact covers provisions on trade in services, movement of natural persons and investment into the AJCEP.
Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said movement of service suppliers will be better facilitated under the protocol.
“This new development will ensure that Japan continues to be a strong anchor in regional trade. With other initiatives that Asean and Japan are engaged in—such as the renewed Asean-Japan 10-year Strategic Economic Cooperation Roadmap—Japan remains an important partner of Asean in its economic integration agenda,” Lopez said.
“Under the protocol, several key features were agreed [upon] that will facilitate the movement of service suppliers in the region,” he added.
Under the pact, Filipinos can now be granted short-term to long-term business and investor visas to Japan. Professionals in the fields of natural or human sciences and specialists in humanities can also be provided up to five years of stay.
On top of that, entry and temporary stay will also be given to accompanying spouses and children as “dependents” of any Filipino business persons or professionals granted permission to work in Japan.
The Philippines is eyeing to increase its services exports to Japan with the signing of the protocol. In 2017 Japan was the second-highest East Asian country to hire Filipino workers at 112,700.
The protocol also intends to promote, facilitate and protect investments that will strengthen the economic partnership of the parties.
Further, it seeks to increase the attractiveness of Southeast Asia as an investment destination for Japanese firms, which in the process will create more jobs in the region. Amounting to $13.2 billion, Japan was the Asean’s second-largest source of external foreign direct investment in 2017.
The AJCEP is a free-trade agreement between the 10 member-states of the Asean and Japan that took effect in 2008.
It contained commitments that eliminated, if not gradually reduced, tariffs on products between the Asean and Japan to bolster the growth of twoway exports and production sharing arrangements.
Further, the trade deal includes an economic cooperation program to help parties fully utilize the Asean-Japan partnership through technical assistance and capacity building.